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Judging sound rotation when listeners and sounds rotate: Sound source localization is a multisystem process
William A Yost1, Xuan Zhong1, Anbar Najam1
1Speech and Hearing Science, Arizona State University, P.O. Box 870102, Tempe, Arizona 85287, USA.
The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America
|December 3, 2015
Summary
Listeners perceive sound rotation only when sounds move, not when they move. Sound localization relies on acoustic, visual, and vestibular cues for a multisystem process, not just acoustics.
Area of Science:
- Auditory Perception
- Human Multisensory Integration
- Psychoacoustics
Background:
- Sound source localization typically uses auditory cues relative to the head (head-centric).
- Environmental sound locations are perceived relative to the world (world-centric).
- Discrepancies arise when auditory cues conflict with perceived environmental sound motion.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the hypothesis that world-centric sound localization requires integrating auditory cues with head-position information.
- To examine the role of visual and vestibular systems in perceiving sound rotation when listeners or sound sources are in motion.
Main Methods:
- Four experiments were conducted with stationary and rotating listeners and sound sources.
- Auditory cues, head position, and perceived sound rotation were analyzed.
- Visual and vestibular information processing during rotation was investigated.
Main Results:
- Listeners perceived sound rotation only when the sound source moved, not when the listener rotated.
- Perception of sound rotation during simultaneous listener and source rotation involved acoustic, visual, and potentially vestibular information.
- Findings support the integration of multiple sensory inputs for accurate sound localization.
Conclusions:
- Sound source localization is a multisystem process, integrating auditory, visual, and vestibular information.
- The auditory system requires head-position cues to establish world-centric sound locations.
- Perception of environmental sound motion is complex and relies on more than just acoustic data.
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